Masquerade Behind these masquerade masks We are tearing at the seams. Dainty, porcelain faces cracking into shards, Perfect lives, perfect friends, perfect relationships. Awkward acrobats in an inflatable circus, Each death-defying jump a risk, all of our vulnerability on show. One slip, And we fall. Deeper into the reality of our nightmarish lives, The things

Untitled You weren’t going to be there, Is what you told everyone? Somehow I was met with a glare, I elbowed my friend she told me have fun. I sat there and waited, While she climbed on your lap. I knew it was complicated, That was until you gave me a tap. My friend started

Fair Society exists, survives, relies on law, Yet it is rife with, filled with human flaws. Corrupt, biased, broken, Yet nothing is spoken, A result of cold hearts without thaw. As people say “life isn’t fair”, But in this age should justice be rare. Anon Electronic Blues I stare at the blue electronic screen. It

Numb The days grow darker Painfully longer, Each hour that passes Increases her mind’s isolation. “Did they notice?” “Do they care?” Anxiety creeps like a shadow Infecting her like a disease. Circling her thoughts like vultures In labyrinths of ridicule and fear. Her glass mind wanders Dark corridors Chases fading clouds. The gargoyles mock her

We Define Ourselves One person in my family finds it difficult to communicate. He has Asperger’s syndrome. He is smart, He is loving, He is funny, We hear a noise, He hears it ten times louder. It rings in his head for three times longer, Then he breaks. He can’t handle the noise in his

BRAVE NEW WORDS

Every month our Brave New Words blog features submissions received from students who’ve participated in our workshops. Every year Inspireland delivers creative writing and poetry slam workshops to over 6,000 students throughout Ireland.